Art of making shoes



Dec. 1, 1931. R. RICE 1,834,108

ART OF MAKING SHOES Filed 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Dec. 1, 1931. R. RICE 1,834,108

ART OF MAKING SHOES Filed Feb. 15 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet. 2

Patented Dec. 1, 1931 Search Ream PATENT OFFICE ROBERT RICE, OF JOHNSON CITY, NEW YORK, ASSIGN'OR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY ART OF MAKING SHOES -Application filed February 15, 1926. Serial No. 88.270.

This invention relates to the manufacture of shoes, being herein exemplified in its application to the manufacture of pre-welted shoes, that is, shoes in the manufacture of which the welt is attached to the upper before the upper is lasted. I

In the manufacture of pre-welted shoes, the inner margin of a welt is secured to the margin of an upper which is then moistened and placed upon a last having an insole thereon. The upper is next lasted in over the insole and secured temporarily by tacks. After the upper has dried and set to the shape of the last, the temporary tacks are removed,

a filler and outsole applied, and the outsole and welt secured together in the usual manner. After the temporary tacks are removed there is, of course, nothing to hold the lasted upper and welt in place except the natural tendency of the dried upper and welt to remain in lasted position, and the upper along the sides of the shoe is apt to spring away from the last before the outsole can be applied, thus causing the shoe to lose its shape.

It is an object of this invention to insure that the lasted upper will remain in lasted position during that period of the shoes manufacture between the removal of the lasting tacks and the application of the outsole to the shoe, thereby providing an improved shoe.

My invention comprises an improved method of making shoes illustrated herein as exemplified in the manufacture of a prewelted shoe but applicable also in some of its aspects to the manufacture of shoes of other types. In one of its aspects the invention is characterized by the applying of water-dispersed rubber cement (commonly referred to as rubber latex or, more briefly,

as latex) to the inner surface of a shoe upper, preferably at least fom the heel breast line to the tip line, and to the corresponding marginal portion or feather of an insole. After the water-dispersed rubber cement has been applied to these portions of the shoe upper and insole, the upper is worked into lasted relation to the insole and the. last on which the upper and insole are mounted, and the overlasted portion of the upper is pressed against the insole so that the cemented marginal portion of the upper will adhere to the marginal portion of the insole. Fastenings are driven to insure that the cemented surfaces will not separate while the upper is setting on the last. After the shoe has set on the last the fastenings may be removed and an outsole attached. Preferably the side lasting operation just described is carried on progressively along each side of the shoe, the toe and heel portions of the shoe being lasted in any 00 preferred manner.

I have found that water-dispersed rubber cement or latex is peculiarly effective in lasting shoes in the manner described in the preceding paragraph since it provides a thorc5 oughly satisfactory bond between the shoe upper and the insole and surfaces coated with cement of this type will maintain for an indefinite time their capacity to adhere to each other when brought in contact. Moreover the effectiveness of this type of cement is not affected by the presence of even a considerable amount of moisture in the shoe parts.

In the manufacture of the specific type of shoe herein illustrated, in accordance. with my invention, the following steps are performed. An insole is prepared with a filler attached thereto and the edge face of the filler as well as the adjacent marginal por tion or feather of the insole are coated with cement. An upper having a welt attached thereto is coated with cement on those parts which are to engage the cemented portion of the insole, that is the inner surface of the marginal portion of the upper and the edge faces of the upper and welt. The prepared insole and upper are than placed upon a last and the inner margin of the Welt is brought in over the cemented margin of the insole at each side of the shoe. The welt and the shoe upper are pressed inwardly so that the edge face of the welt at least, and preferably also the edge face of the upper, will engage the filler, the welt is pressed downwardly so that the cemented margin of the upper will adhere to the margin or feather of the insole, and fastenings are driven, as previously pointed out, to insure that the cemented surfaces will not draw apart while the upper sets on the last.

The various aspects of the invention will appear more fully from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an insole with a filler attached thereto;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a shoe upper having a welt sewed to its margin;

Fig. 3 is a view of the insole and upper assembled upon and lasted over a last;

Fig. 4 is a detail showing the method of using the lasting apparatus; and

Fig. 5 is a view of apparatus for use in carrying out the method.

In Fig. 1 the numeral 2 indicates an insole which may be of leather or other suitable material to which has been attached a filler 4 which may be of material corresponding to the material of the welt and outsole or may be of dissimilar material such as felt. The filler 4 may be attached to the insole 2 in any suitable manner, glue or the like cement being preferably. used. Along the sides of the insole from breast line to tip line cement is app-lied to the exposed marginal portion of the insole and the edge face of the filler, as indicated at 6 (Fig. 1). An upper 8 is prepared, as shown in Fig. 2, by attaching a welt 10 to its margin and coating with cement the inner marginal portion 12 of the upper and the edge faces of the upper and welt as indicated at 14, the extent of this cement coating corresponding substantially to the extent of the coating on the corresponding portions of the insole.

It has been found that p-articularly'satisfactory results are obtained with a latex type adhesive, that is, a cement containing a substantial proportion at least of water-dispersed rubber such as the milk of the rubber tree (H e'vea brasz'lz'ensis), and, in fact a substantially pure latex may be employed, the same consisting of about 40 per cent. of waterdispersed rubber. It is found that a relatively pure latex dries more quickly and is otherwise more suitable than compounds containing a large proportion of other adhesives in addition to rubber. It is to be understood, however, that other cements having similar characteristics may be employed. Cement having been applied as above described and allowed to dry at least until it is nolonger substantially tacky to the touch (though it may be allowed to dry indefinitely), the insole 2 and filler 4 are secured to the last by tacks 20 and the upper 8 placed. thereon. The margin of the upper is then preferably lifted above the surface of the feather of the insole and forced inwardly to bring the edge faces of the welt and upper into engagement with the edge face of the filler upon the insole,

the upper being then allowed to en age the feather of the insole and caused firm y to adhere thereto by pressure, the purpose being to bring the parts into lasted position as far as possible while holding the cemented surfaces out of contact and then to bring the cemented surfaces into contact with the parts in the position they are to occupy permanently. In Fig. 4 is shown apparatus for holding the welt and hence the cemented margin of the upper while the last carrying the insole is manipulated first to bring the margin of the upper over the feather of the insole and the edge face of the welt and preferably that of the upper in contact with the edge face of the filler, and then, by upward pressure of the shoe, to cause firm adhesion between the margin of the upper and the feather of the insole and, by inward pressure, also firm adhesion of the edge face of the filler with the welt and upper. Tacks 18 are inserted to help hold the parts in lasted position during the drying out of the shoe. This operation preferably is carried on progressively along the sides of the shoe and as a convenient apparatus for the practice of this method that shown in Figs. 4 and 5 is provided. As shown by Fig. 4, a pair of jaws 22, 24, is arranged in proximity to a nozzle 26. As shown, the upper jaw 22 is fixed and the lower jaw 24 is movable. The engaging sur face of the upper jaw 22 is preferably roughened to secure a firm hold on the outer face of the welt, and the engaging face of the jaw 24 is preferably smooth so as not to injure the face of the welt which is exposed in the finished shoe. The lower jaw 24 is beveled off at its outer end so that it readily enters the welt crease. The jaws may be operated by any suitable means, for example, by a treadle connected to an extension of the lower jaw to cause them to seize the welt, whereupon the operator, by pressing downwardly, then inwardly and then upwardly upon the shoe, works the upper 8 into lasted relation to the insole 2 and the last and brings the coated surfaces of the insole and filler into contact with the corresponding coated surfaces of the upper and welt, as indicated in Fig. 4. One of the tacks 18 may then be driven from the nozzle 26, through the welt, upper and insole and into the last, the tack being preferably left upstanding to facilitate subsequent removal. This operation is carried on progressively at each side of the shoe.

The apparatus shown in Figs. 4 and 5 comprises a tacker of known type provided with a gripper. as described, adjacent to the tacker nozzle. The organization of the tacker may be substantially as shown and described in United States Letters Patent No. 1,106,393. granted August 11, 1914, on application of Fred L. Mackenzie, to which reference may be made for a detailed description of the mechanism.

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Briefly, the mechanism comprises a driver lower face of the upper which is to overlap 30 carried by a driver bar 32 arranged to slide vertically in a guideway in the front part of the head 34, the driver bar 32 being lifted against the tension of a spring by a lifting cam on the front end of the main shaft 36. The driving shaft is driven from a loose pulley 38 which may be clutched to the shaft at the will of the operator by suitable clutch mechanism controlled by a treadle rod 40, as described in said patent. A tack pot 42 supplies tacks to a raceway 44 which conducts them to a point adjacent to the nozzle 26 where they are separated one by one and delivered to the tacker nozzle 26 by suitable tack separating mechanism 46 such as that disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 1,312,557, granted August 12, 1919, on ap plication of Fred L. Mackenzie.

The fixed jaw 22 is shown as supported on a plate 48 introduced between the head and the column of the machine and the movable jaw 24 is attached to a member 50 which is pivoted at 52 to the plate 48 and has a long, resilient, rearward extension lying in the path of a screw 54 threaded through a block 56 which is attached to the treadle rod 40 so that during the initial movement of the treadle the jaw 24 will be caused to approach the jaw 22. The welt having been thus seized be tween the jaws, the shoe may be manipulated, as indicated in Fig. 4, to cause the cemented portions of the insole and filler to be brought into proper relation to the cemented portions of the upper and welt and pressed together, whereupon, by further depression of the treadle, the clutch will be tripped and one of the tacks 18 inserted through the nozzle 26 temporarily to hold the upper in lasted position, the rear portion of the jaw lever 50 yielding sufliciently to permit tripping of the clutch. The toe and heel portions of the shoe may be lasted in any suitable manner, for example, on a bed lasting machine, and a binding wire 58 may be employed, as shown in Fig. 3. to hold the upper at the toe in lasted position, if desired.

After the upper has dried out, the tacks 18, 20 and the binding wire 58 may be removed and an outsole applied. The outsole may be secured to the welt in any usual manner, for instance, by the outsole stitching machine.

The novel apparatus above described but not claimed herein is made the subject-matter of my divisional application Serial No. 396.765, filed October 2, 1929.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. That method of making pre-welted shoes which includes the steps of assembling on a last an insole having a filler and a prewelted upper having a coating of water-dispersed rubber cement upon the edge faces of the welt and upper and upon the adjacent the feather of the insole, working the upper into lasted position over the feather with its edge face and the edge face of the Welt against the edge face of the filler, thus causing the coated faces to adhere, and attaching an outsole to the shoe.

2. That method of making pre-welted shoes which includes the steps of assembling on a last an insole having a filler fastened thereon and having a coating of adhesive containing water-dispersed rubber upon the vertical edge face of the filler and the adjacent feather of the insole, assembling therewith a pre-welted upper having a coating of adhesive containing water-dispersed rubber upon the edge faces of the welt and upper and the adjacent lower face of the upper which is to overlap the feather of the insole, working the upper into lasted position over the insole, and forcing together the coated surfaces to cause them to adhere.

3. That method of making pre-welted shoes which includes the steps of assembling on a last an insole having a filler and having a coating of latex type of adhesive upon the vertical edge face of the filler and the adjacent feather face of the insole, assembling therewith a pre-welted upper having a coating of latex type of adhesive upon the edge faces of the welt and upper and the adjacent lower face of the upper which is to overlap the feather of the insole, engaging the upper in the crease under the welt and drawing the upper upwardly and inwardly over the feather into position to adhere to the edge of the filler, and pressing the upper and welt into adhering relation with the insole and filler without relative movement of one latexed surface on another.

4. That improvement in methods of making shoes in which cement is employed to secure uppers in lasted relation to insoles which consists in applying water-dispersed rubber cement to the marginal portions of a shoe upper and of an insole, allowing the cement to dry, Working the upper progressively into lasted relation to the insole and a last on which the insole is mounted, and pressing the dry cemented surfaces together to insure their adhesion without the use of a solvent and without artificial heat.

5. That improvement in methods of making shoes in which cement is employed to secure shoe uppers in lasted relation to insoles which comprises applying water-dispersed rubber cement to the marginal portions of a shoe upper and of an insole, and working the upper into lasted relation to the insole and a last on which the insole is mounted and causing adhesion of the cemented surfaces of the upper and insole at ordinary temperature.

6. That improvement in methods of making shoes in which cement is employed to secure shoe uppers in lasted relation to insoles which consists in applying water-dispersed rubber cement to the marginal portions of a shoe upper and of an insole, workin the upper into lasted relation to the inso e and a last on which the insole is mounted, inserting temporary fastenings to take the strain of the lasted upper until the upper has set to the shape of the last, and thereafter removing the fastenings, said water-dispersed rubber cement serving to hold the upper in lasted position without the use of a solvent or artificial heat.

7. That improvement in methods of making shoes in which cement is employed to secure uppers in lasted relation to insoles which comprises applying water-dispersed rubber cement to a shoe upper and insloe, working the upper progressively over the margin of the bottom of the insole into lasted relation to the insole and a last on which the insole is mounted, pressing the marginal portion of the upper into contact with the insole, and driving metallic fastenings to take the strain of the lasted upper till the shoe has set on the last and the cement has set at ordinary temperature and without the use of a solvent.

8. That improvement in methods of making shoes in which cement is employed to secure shoe uppers in lasted relation to insoles, which consists in first applying water-dispersed rubber cement to the marginal portions of a shoe upper and of an insole, then, after such cementing has been completed, working the upper into lasted relation to the insole and the last on which the insole is mounted and causin adhesion of the cemented surfaces of the upper and insole at ordinary temperatures.

9. That improvement in methods of making shoes in which cement is employed to secure shoe uppers in lasted relation to insoles, which consists in first applying water-dispersed rubber cement to. the marginal por-- tions of a shoe upper and of an insole, then, after such cementing has been completed, working successive portions of the u per progressively into lasted relation to t e insole and the last on which the insole is mounted and causing adhesion of the cemented surfaces of the upper and insole at ordinary temperatures.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ROBERT RICE. 

